** The value of national parks
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Tuesday, September 24, 2019
Yellowstone National Park ([link removed])

A new report ([link removed]) from Harvard University and Colorado State University determined that the U.S. National Park system represents more than $100 billion in value for the American economy annually. As part of the study, Americans said they'd be willing to pay $62 billion in annual taxes to fund conservation programs in the parks to ensure future generations are able to enjoy them. Meanwhile, park funding has remained relatively flat in recent decades despite increased visitation and the addition of dozens of new park sites. And the park maintenance backlog sits at more than $12 billion.

The report author, Linda Bilmes, said: “The national parks are the most beloved government entity in the country. They have enormous approval ratings, 330 million visits a year. People come from all over the world to see the national parks, but the parks are on an unsustainable funding trajectory.”


** Updating oil and gas policies
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This morning, the House Natural Resources Committee will hold a subcommittee hearing ([link removed]) on introduced legislation to reform oil and gas leasing adjustments, royalty payments, and methane capture, among other issues.
Quick hits


** Acting BLM Director William Perry Pendley recuses himself from litigation involving Grand Staircase-Escalante
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Bloomberg ([link removed])


** Judge temporarily blocks logging in nation's largest national forest
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The Hill ([link removed]) | Reuters ([link removed])


** Top Interior official had dozens of meetings and phone conversations with oil and gas interests
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E&E News ([link removed])


** National parks' economic benefits put at over $100 billion annually
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Harvard Gazette ([link removed])


** Changes to Endangered Species Act rules could spell trouble for the lesser prairie chicken
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NM Political Report ([link removed])


** Get outside to celebrate national public lands day this Saturday
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Westword ([link removed])


** Op-ed: Oil and gas leases near Hovenweep National Monument put short-sighted gain ahead of balanced future
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Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])


** Editorial: Science and the market indicate that Montana must rely more on alternatives to coal in the near future
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Billings Gazette ([link removed])
Quote of the day
This is absurd. The Trump Administration literally moved the Bureau of Land Management into an office building with the fossil fuel companies it's supposed to regulate."
—@RepMikeLevin ([link removed]) on BLM Relocation
Picture this

National parks are like books: they each have their own story to tell, and their stories stay with us long after we’ve finished reading them. What stories of Yosemite are written on the pages of your life's book?| @YosemiteNPS ([link removed])


**
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